Topic: The Universal Games Ranking Forum (Currently: Characters/Weapons/etc. You Hate Playing Against)

I have played and beaten every Zelda game except for Breath of the Wild which I will get once I get a Switch. The only game I really know for certain where I rank it is number 1, but here goes.

1. The Legend of Zelda - I'm sure there is a little bit of nostalgia to this, but this game is a masterpiece. It doesn't hold your hand and is difficult, but the complete frustration and lack of any direction is greatly overstated by people who do not like it. And you cannot just discount the great influence this game had on the gaming industry. This is not just my favorite Zelda, it is my favorite game of all time.

2. If I had to pick a number 2, it would probably be Skyward Sword, so you know I am not just some old fogey longing for the good ol' days with my number 1 pick. I loved the motion controls, the bosses, the story, the way the levels changed. I love it all.

3-6. I'm not sure how to put these in an exact order, but my next 4 would probably be Oracle of Ages, Spirit Tracks, Twilight Princess, and Zelda 2. I loved the puzzle focus of Ages more than Seasons. I thought Spirit Tracks was brilliant with great levels and bosses, with the only downside being it was way too short. Twilight Princess I think easily has the best levels of any Zelda game. And Zelda 2 is admittedly nostalgia based as it was the very first game that was mine, that I went to the store and bought it myself, so it will always hold a special place in my heart.

After that, I don't really know. They are all great games. My bottom three in no particular order, though, are Link to the Past, Wind Waker, and Minish Cap. Can't really say what, but something just didn't click with me with them like with the others. They are still good, though.

Here we go again.

http://www.easypolls.net/poll.html?p=5991ae67e4b004885f2989a9

Dunno when I'll close the poll, but as I said, there's four options now. Keep this in mind, as whatever comes fourth cannot be an option for next time.

The stakes have raised.

I think it's a good idea to include series that not many people have played. Even if it doesn't get many people participating in the ranking, a few opinions on the games might help people who are on the fence on trying out the series. It'll give readers an idea on which game to start with or which ones might interest them. I've currently only played 4, 5, 7, and 8 but I own 6 and 9. I have a lot of games in my backlog but if I hear people praise 6 and 9 then I'll probably be motivated to play them sooner rather than later.

@gcunit I added a spoiler warning to my opinions on Oracle of Ages and Skyward Sword. When I was writing it I wasn't quite sure if I should include the gameplay events or not, since it's not technically story related but it might take away some of the surprise if people want that. In the end I added them because those events are a big part of the reason why I love those games. I'll try to be more cautious of spoilers in the future though and I apologize if I spoiled anything to anyone.

@Xaldin True, a fair amount of opinions here have influenced my own, I'm thinking of giving Gold and Silver another shot sometime, along with the Minish Cap and Twilight Princess. I'd be willing to try a DQ game if I like what I hear here.

@BigYellow Nice job making my idea the "strange option"

@Nintendoer Was wondering when someone would mention that. They're actually all 'The Strange Option', like last time where every option was 'The Wrong Option'.

It's hard to pick a favourite, well maybe not. I'd put BOTW at number 1. Then the other top 4 in no particular order are Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, Majora's Mask and Link's Awakening. Then bottom of the pile by a country mile, only Zelda game I didn't enjoy, was...
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Skyward Sword.

Absolutely awful Zelda game.

Same. XD I noticed the "wrong option" blurb last time as well.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE: I'm honestly curious about what specifically you disliked about Skyward Sword. Was it the controls (which to an extent I agree with)? Environment/world design? The story? Groose's pompadour? (What is it with bullies in some media having pompadours?)

Hope it's not too late to leave my ranking of the Zelda games. I haven't played too many but here is my list.

1. Breath of the Wild - Wow, just wow. I honestly don't think I can put into words how amazing this game is. From the gorgeous artstyle, to the beautiful music, to the amazing gameplay. Everything was just a masterpiece. I loved exploring this world and meeting the new characters, and completing the awesome dungeons. This game made me feel like a kid again, the feeling of trying something new and experiencing something for the first time. The sense of freedom it brought was incredible and I can't wait for the dlc.

2. Twilight Princess - This was the first ever Zelda game I ever played and it was an experience I'll always remember. I loved the artstyle in this game. It was going for a more darker gritty look yet still cartoonish in a way. It had some truly awesome dungeons such as the Snowpeak Mansion, Temple in the Sky and Arbiter's Grounds. I also loved the whole theme with the twilight and of course Midna, the best side companion in any Zelda game. I actually cried when I finished the game due to actually finishing it and also the bittersweet ending.

3. Majora's Mask - I was honestly surprised by how much I enjoyed this game. When hearing it having a time limit and focus on quests rather than dungeons, it made be cautious. However after playing it, all my doubts were gone. I enjoyed how intricate the side quests were and how they really made you feel for the characters in the game. Also the time limit created some really tense moments that really made it better. Tatl was also pretty cool. The dark tone surprised me in a good way. A moment that really amazed me was when I found a man hiding in a corner, crying and saying he didn't want to die. It just really made you feel and made me really motivated to save these fictional people in termina XD

6. A Link Between Worlds - Tbh, I didn't think I would enjoy a top down (or whatever it's called) Zelda. I previously played some of Link to the Past but didn't really enjoy it. But I actually had lots of fun. The overworld was fun to explore, with lots of hidden secrets and music was just fantastic. I also loved having the ability to do the dungeons in any order and the wall mechanic was really cool and made some awesome puzzles

7. Link to the Past - This is the only game on my list I haven't actually completed. From what I can remember I'd say I was half way through it before dropping it. I think the reason I dropped it was because I kinda gotta stuck and decided to take a break from it, a break which didn't seem to end XD. I enjoyed how challenging it was and the music was also good. The dungeons were also fun to work out and trying to figure how to get where was also enjoyable. I think the reason I didn't enjoy it as much was because sometimes I felt like it was too vague and unclear how to get to places and often times I would be unsure how to actually get to the next section. Another factor was also form factor. I think I enjoyed ALBW a lot more simply due to portability. It's a great game and I can see why many love it, just personally I thought ALBW was way better.

8. Ocarina of Time - I don't know why I didn't enjoy this game as much as others did. Maybe it was because people kept hyping it up, or the high expectations I had or maybe because I played TP first. I honestly found it kinda bland. It's a great game don't get me wrong, but I found the overworld boring, didn't find many characters that interesting and the only dungeons I enjoy were the water and desert temple. I did really like characters of Sheik and Zelda though . It's a good game that still holds up but I feel that a lot of the other Zeldas are better.

@Eric258 Nice list, and just to clarify for anyone else wondering, Zelda is still the topic up until the current poll is closed, which should be either tonight or tomorrow morning.

Edit: By the way, I just checked the poll results, and while it's not close to finished, the current results are seriously surprising, I'm not spoiling anything, but the frontrunner probably isn't what you think.

12. Minish Cap
11. Skyward Sword
10. A Link to the Past
9. Phantom Hourglass
8. Majora's Mask
7. Wind Waker
6. Breath of the Wild
5. A Link Between Worlds
4. Link's Awakening (my first Zelda)
3. Twilight Princess
1. Ocarina of Time 3D/Oracle of Ages & Seasons

I'm not counting Breath of the Wild because it isn't a metroidvania game so it'd just be at the bottom of my Zelda list. Others can rank open world games as they please, I'll just rank all of the other ones that I've completed.

1. Twilight Princess
2. Majora's Mask
3. Ocarina of Time
4. The Wind Waker
5. The Minish Cap
~(This is the divide where I stop having positive feelings about the games that fall below.)~
6. Skyward Sword
7. Four Swords Adventures
8. A Link Between Worlds
9. Phantom Hourglass
10. Spirit Tracks

Haven't played all of them, but...

15. Zelda 2
14. Zelda 1
13. Tri Force Heroes
12. Link's Awakening
11. Oracle of Ages
10. Minish Cap
9. A Link to the Past
8. Majora's Mask
7. Spirit Tracks
6. Twilight Princess
5. Link Between Worlds
4. Ocarina of Time
3. Wind Waker
2. Skyward Sword
1. Breath of the Wild

Poll closes in an hour, unless I get stolen for something, I'm a tad caught up right now. The link's here if you've any last-minute votes.

http://www.easypolls.net/poll.html?p=5991ae67e4b004885f2989a9

Also, remember how I said the results would surprise you? That kinda completely changed over the last day or so. I won't spoil too much, but it's not looking good for my boy Crash...

Gonna wait a tad longer, we've a tie for first, and I'd rather not fuss with any tiebreaker fuffle.

Edit: We got our deciding vote, the poll is now closed! Hold tight while I tally up.

Right, this was fun, nowhere near as much of a clear winner this time, in fact the top 3 were all in first at some point! (Although we sadly had a clear loser from early on...) Without further ado, here are the results!

Mainline Crash Bandicoot Games - 35% (8 Votes) The Winner!
Mainline Metroid Games - 30% (7 Votes) Runner-up!
Mainline Dragon Quest Games - 30% (7 Votes) Joint Runner-up!
Street Fighter 2 - 5 - 5% (1 Vote) Genuinely Depressing!

My comment must have just riled up all the Crash fans here, cause against all odds, doubling in votes in a mere hour, Crash Bandicoot is our new topic.
I'm sure there's a good few people who would've preferred Metroid or DQ, but don't lose hope, as since they're joint for second, both of them are guaranteed options on the next poll!
I just spent 60 euro on a Fightstick for Street Fighter 5 and now I need a coffee.

Seriously though, since it came third (kinda) Street Fighter will have another chance if there's demand. Although I have a feeling how that'll go.

Mild disappointment aside, Happy Ranking!

Edit: Oh yeah you can also start discussing what you want to see next too, forgot to mention that.

I was the only one who voted for SF. Nice. I've never played Crash Bandicoot, so I'll be back eventually.

@Nintendoer Street Fighter would've been my vote, but I wanted to see Crash too and I figured SF would be the more popular option. Didn't quite go as planned, but either way, I'll get my list done later when I've a chance.

@Tyranexx I hated disliked the controls in Skyward Sword, but I endured 60+ hours of it. I'm still of the opinion that the harp mini-game is downright broken, and because of that it's one of the few Zelda games I haven't 100% completed yet. The controls worked 90/95% of the time, but the times when they didn't work ruined the experience for me. I want to be immersed in a video game, but if the controls prove to be a barrier between me and the "video game world", then I'm distracted from that experience. Controls need to be intuitive, I don't want to think about how I'm controlling my character.

I didn't like how the overworld was consensed in three small areas (which is ironic, because I think BOTW is way too big and empty). The sky on the other hand was empty, and served to be nothing more than a glorified level select screen.

The dungeons were good, especially the Ancient Cistern, but the bosses weren't memorable. You fought Ghirahim once or twice, meaning those dungeons didn't have a themed boss, you also fought The Imprisoned three times(!). The scorpion was a push-over (he was downgraded to a mini-boss later on, so that says enough). Then there was sea monster that escaped from a Pixar film, I'm still not sure what that thing was doing in a Zelda game... And the only one I liked was Koloktos, maybe because it was the only boss that felt like it belonged in the dungeon where you encountered him.

It's been way too long since I've played a crash bandicoot game. The only one I can vividly remember is Wrath of Cortex, so I don't think I'd be able to give a fair ranking on this one. I did really enjoy the series and I might end up going back to it someday, so it'll be nice to hear what people say about it.